The 9-session NASA Family Science Night program invites middle school children and their families to discover the wide variety of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics being performed at NASA and in everyday life. Family Science Night...(View More) programs explore various themes on the Sun, the Moon, the Stars, and the Universe through fun, hands-on activities, including at-home experiments. Information about Family Science Night implementation and support resources, including the facilitator's guide, are available by registering on the Family Science Night Facilitators website (see Related & Supplemental Resources for link).(View Less)

In this activity, each student will keep a science journal during each of the four seasons. Students will record observations of the general outdoor environment they visit and then will make observations of one specific item from the habitat in each...(View More) season. At the end of the school year, students will compare their seasonal drawings and share their results with the class. This is the 1st of 3 sets of learning activities that are part of a unit on seasons that are companion activities to the Elementary GLOBE children's book, "Mystery of the Missing Hummingbirds." Includes a teacher implementation guide. GLOBE (Global Learning and Observation to Benefit the Environment) is a worldwide, hands-on, K-12 school-based science education program.(View Less)

In this activity, students compute the strengths of the gravitational forces exerted on the Moon by the Sun and by the Earth, and demonstrate the actual shape of the Moon's orbit around the Sun. The lesson begins with students' assumptions about the...(View More) motions of the Moon about the Earth and the Earth about the Sun, and then test their understanding using an experimental apparatus made from a cardboard or plywood disk and rope. This resource is from PUMAS - Practical Uses of Math and Science - a collection of brief examples created by scientists and engineers showing how math and science topics taught in K-12 classes have real world applications.(View Less)

This is a lesson plan for an activity about the nature of the Sun's apparent motion throughout the day. Learners will follow detailed instructions to construct a sundial using everyday materials and make measurements of the shadow cast by the...(View More) sundial. Learners use the shadow cast by the sundial to track the motion of the Sun throughout the day and use these measurements, geometry, and trigonometry to make calculations of altitude and azimuth of the Sun, as well as the time of true local noon and the altitude of the Sun at true local noon. Measurements can be taken during one day only, for a few days, or on many days throughout an entire year to get a more complete picture of the Sun’s apparent motion. This activity requires daytime access to a sunny outdoor location over the course of several hours. This is an activity in the Touch the Sun teacher's guide.(View Less)

In this activity, students become familiar with the orientation of shadows, their size in relation to the object casting them, and how the alignment of the Sun, the object, and the shadow tells us much about how shadows work. Supplies needed for...(View More) this investigation include pebbles, coins, marbles or counting blocks, a box of chalk, chalk/wipeboard and markers, overhead projector or lamp. This is lesson 4 of Threads of Inquiry: Observing the World Around Us, a series of 10 inquiry investigations focusing on the changing seasons and other aspects of our everyday existence. Each lesson includes teacher background information, Inquiry investigations are adapted to meet the developmental stage and skill level of students in three grade bands: K-2, 2-4, and 4-6. Each grade band is supported by educational strategies appropriate to the student's developmental stage, a narrative that models and describes the inquiry process applied in the lesson, and a hands-on inquiry investigation. Literacy extensions and a non-linguistic pre- and post-assessment accompany each lesson.(View Less)

This inquiry activity supports student understanding of the cause of light, heat and shadow, how to measure the passage of time, and how to use rules and other measuring tools. Students make observations using shadows, a meter stick, and a homemade...(View More) sundial. Supplies required include flashlights, ruler, chalk, coffee can, sand, protractors, yarn and a calculator with trigonometry functions (tangent/co-tantent) This is the sixth of 10 inquiry investigations in Threads of Inquiry: Observing the World Around Us. Each lesson includes teacher background information, a narrative that models and describes the inquiry process applied in the lesson, and a hands-on inquiry investigation. Literacy extensions and a non-linguistic pre- and post-assessment are also included.(View Less)

In this introductory activity, students are introduced to the fundamental tools of scientific inquiry: observing, identifying changes, perspectives and patterns. Materials needed include student journals, pencils, crayons, plastic sample bags,...(View More) microscopes, scales and rulers. This is the first of ten hands-on, minds-on investigations comprising "Threads of Inquiry: Observing the World Around Us" focusing on the changing seasons and other aspects of our everyday experience. Each lesson contains information on cognitive development, an introductory inquiry activity, and an inquiry investigation. An introduction to inquiry in education and related educational resources (especially connections to folklore) are provided for educators.(View Less)

In this inquiry investigation, students learn that while the Sun appears to move around the Earth, in fact it is the Earth spinning around on its axis while the Sun remains stationary. Materials suggested for this activity include an easel or wipe...(View More) board and markers, pencils, journals, crayons, and adhesive dots or bingo markers. This is the second of 10 inquiry investigations in Threads of Inquiry: Observing the World Around Us. Each lesson includes teacher background information, a narrative that models and describes the inquiry process applied in the lesson, and a hands-on inquiry investigation. Literacy extensions and a non-linguistic pre- and post-assessment are also included.(View Less)

In this inquiry investigation, students study the motion and positions of the Earth and how they affect the path of sunlight we get in different places. They discover that the Earth must be curved to account for the different lengths of shadows at...(View More) different latitudes and that the Sun is very far away. Supplies required include globes, blue-tak, toothpick, flashlights, and golf tees. This is the seventh of 10 inquiry investigations in Threads of Inquiry: Observing the World Around Us. Each lesson includes teacher background information, a narrative that models and describes the inquiry process applied in the lesson, and a hands-on inquiry investigation. Literacy extensions and a non-linguistic pre- and post-assessment are also included.(View Less)

In this inquiry investigation, students conclude that the motion of the Earth is linked to the changes we observe such as the length of the day. Students learn about the reason behind the Earth's time zones. An optional water clock and sand clock...(View More) making activity supports this investigation. This is the eighth of 10 inquiry investigations in Threads of Inquiry: Observing the World Around Us. Each lesson includes teacher background information, a narrative that models and describes the inquiry process applied in the lesson, and a hands-on inquiry investigation. Literacy extensions and a non-linguistic pre- and post-assessment are also included.(View Less)